Ecology and Vegetation Dynamics Studies

Population responses to environmental stochasticity are primarily driven by survival-reproduction trade-offs and mediated by aridity

The paper uses Bayesian models to show that population responses to environmental stochasticity vary widely and are driven by survival-reproduction trade-offs and aridity.

A demographic framework for assessing population vulnerability to contrasting perturbation regimes

The paper develops a demographic framework to assess population vulnerability to different perturbation types and shows adult survival perturbations have the strongest impact, with vulnerability increasing in slower life histories.

Invasive species undermine the bioark hypothesis in a low-latitude urban biodiversity hotspot

The paper tests the bioark hypothesis in Atlanta by analyzing ant communities, finding that invasive species, not habitat structure, drive native diversity loss in urban areas.

Trait dissimilarity-based tree species loss affects tree diversity effects on herbivory

The paper shows that trait dissimilarity-based tree species loss affects how tree diversity influences herbivory and pathogen infestation, with functional diversity playing a key role.

Primary productivity declines when species composition and climate are mismatched

The paper examines how community-climate disequilibrium affects net primary productivity in rangeland ecosystems, finding that mismatched communities are less productive.

Catching the effects of biotic interactions on community data: partial correlations outperform marginal ones with proper abiotic modelling.

The paper shows that partial correlations in Joint Species Distribution Models better identify biotic interactions than marginal correlations, provided abiotic effects are properly modeled.

Rare plants can make an important contribution to sustain local biodiversity through biological interactions

This study examines the relationship between plant rarity and biodiversity, finding that rare plants contribute significantly to local biodiversity through their interactions with arthropods and other plants.

The dominance of non-native plants over native plants increases with the number of global change factors

The study shows that non-native plants become more dominant than native plants as the number of global change factors increases in experimental communities.

From species-area relationships to biodiversity risk assessment

The paper develops a method to estimate biodiversity risk metrics from species-area relationships using empirical data from forest censuses.

Botanical nursing by a dwarf shrub as a nature-based approach to plant biodiversity conservation in the Nepal Himalayas

This study shows that Berberis angulosa shrubs enhance plant biodiversity and protect species of conservation value in the Nepal Himalayas through facilitative effects.

A trait-based framework for quantifying arthropod invasion potential: Predictive modeling with Tropilaelaps mites as a case study

This paper develops a trait-based predictive model to assess arthropod invasion potential, applying it to Tropilaelaps mites to identify key traits and predict their invasive capacity.

Habitat context alters the pace of climate-driven community warming across terrestrial and freshwater ecosystems

The paper shows habitat structure influences the rate of community warming in response to climate change across different ecosystems.

Impact of Fragmentation on the Metapopulation Structure of wild olive

The paper examines how habitat fragmentation and disturbance affect the regeneration and persistence of wild olive trees in Ethiopia, finding that disturbance significantly reduces seedling occurrence and persistence.

Arthropods on native versus alien woody plants: understanding variation across host plant taxonomy and geography

The paper compares arthropod occurrence on native versus alien woody plants across eastern North America, finding higher caterpillar, beetle, and spider occurrence on native plants.

Indirect interactions driven by soil effects enable coexistence among competing plant species

The paper shows that soil effects mediate indirect interactions between plant species, stabilizing coexistence by altering growth and germination rates.

Thermophilization, climatic debt, and consequent declines in primary productivity

This study quantifies thermophilization and climatic debt in Japanese forests, finding increasing climatic debt correlates with declines in primary productivity.

Repeated trends in altitudinal gradients of diversity: how habitat filtering and biotic interactions structure ecological communities

This study examines elevational gradients in Ithomiini butterfly communities across two Neotropical regions, finding consistent patterns in diversity and phylogenetic structure shaped by habitat filtering and biotic interactions.

Functional and biological diversity jointly shape growth and recovery of Synechococcus communities under stressors.

This study examines how functional and biological diversity affect the growth and recovery of Synechococcus communities under different stressors.

Short and long-term consequences of Habitat Transformation for Biodiversity

This paper uses simulations to study how habitat transformation affects biodiversity, finding that adaptation can reduce species diversity while habitat change has mixed short- and long-term effects.

Community and leaf-level controls of carbon fluxes in an invaded New Zealand alpine tussock grassland

The paper examines how warming and plant invasion interact to affect carbon fluxes in New Zealand alpine grasslands, finding invader-specific responses and abiotic/functional trait controls.

A modelling technique unifying four paradigms of metacommunity theory

The paper introduces a unified mathematical framework that integrates four metacommunity paradigms and demonstrates its accuracy in capturing ecological dynamics where traditional models fail.

A Predictability Framework for Conservation Strategy: Empirical Evidence from Estuarine Biodiversity Forecasting

This study evaluates how predictability varies with biodiversity metrics, spatial scale, and forecast horizon in estuarine ecosystems, informing conservation strategies based on predictability regimes.

Invasive alien predators overturn the spatial-scaling laws of biocomplexity

The paper shows invasive alien predators reverse species-area and network-area relationships in ponds by causing prey extinctions and simplifying food webs.

Network topology differentially shapes ecological processes across scales in experimental metacommunities

This study shows that network topology affects ecological processes differently at local and global scales in experimental metacommunities.

Can coastal plantation forests substitute for natural coastal forests as bird and plant habitat? A test across coastal zonation

This study assesses whether coastal plantation forests can substitute for natural coastal forests in supporting bird and plant species, finding comparable bird richness but lower plant richness and altered zonation patterns.

Coupling abundance and spatial distribution for an unbiased and tractable beta diversity framework

This paper introduces a new beta diversity framework that couples abundance and spatial distribution, revealing ecological phase transitions and isolating environmental filtering effects.

Habitat-loss-driven predictor coupling limits inference about the independent effects of configuration in additive habitat-amount models: implications for the fragmentation debate

This paper shows that additive habitat-amount models cannot reliably infer independent configuration effects due to asymmetric nonlinear coupling between habitat amount and configuration.

Glacier retreat reshapes trophic networks: interaction turnover outpaces species turnover over space-time

The paper examines how glacier retreat alters trophic networks by analyzing plant-arthropod interactions over 140 years, finding that interaction turnover outpaces species turnover.

The Portal Project: a long-term study of a Chihuahuan desert ecosystem

The Portal Project archives over 40 years of continuous monthly rodent, biannual plant, multi-decade ant, and automated weather data from 24 experimentally manipulated Chihuahuan Desert plots with automated quality control.

Ecological predictability emerges at the population level in phytoplankton communities

The paper shows that ecological predictability in phytoplankton communities arises at the population level, not from individual traits like cell size.